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Sunday, January 15, 2017

War is a tragedy, no matter who wins

The tragedy of war is enormous. Civilians, soldiers, prisoners of war, and the animals and environment all are damaged, if not destroyed as a cost of war. However glorious war might be, it is a path that requires destruction.

The reason I like "what ifs" is due to the cultural currents that surround me. Many people assume in this instant gratification world that everything that happened was meant to be. Inevitability accompanies the mindset of people who stare at their screen, listen to their music, and communicate with others only when necessary and via text. The belief in inevitability is a result of the victory, ironically enough. The people who never went to war, or never had to pay such a cost as those who did during World War II do not comprehend the effort given, nor the sacrifices made, to help defeat the greatest enemies of democracy ever known. Nazism and Japanese Militarism could have won the war, if various events had not happened as they did.

The true power of Alternate History is in the ability to show what was at stake, and how various pivots were essential for the original event. Had the Allies fallen the world of the present would be far different, and for me knowing that, makes me feel obsessed with a need to know what needed to happen in order for the right ending.